Cameras face a fundamental trade-off between spatial resolution and temporal resolution. For example, many digital still cameras can capture images with high spatial resolution, while many high-speed video cameras suffer from low spatial resolution. This limitation is due in many instances to hardware factors such as readout and analog-to-digital (A/D) conversion time of image sensors. Although it is possible to increase the readout throughput by introducing parallel A/D convertors and frame buffers, doing so often requires more transistors per pixel, which lowers the fill factor, and increases the cost, for such image sensors. As a compromise; many current camera manufacturers implement a “thin-out” mode, which directly trades-off the spatial resolution for higher temporal resolution, thereby degrading the image quality.
Accordingly, new mechanisms for providing improved temporal resolution without sacrificing spatial resolution are desirable.